Sermon Series on End Times - Between Now and Forever
Dear Friends in Christ,
Not too long ago Steve Wariner came out with the song called “Holes in the Floor of Heaven.” It goes -
One day, shy of 8 years old Cause there are holes in the floor of Heaven
When grandma passed away And her tears are pouring down
I was a broken hearted little boy That’s how you know she’s watching
Blowing out that birthday cake Wishing she could be here now
How I cried when the sky let go Sometimes if you’re lonely
With a cold lonesome rain Just remember she can see
My mom smiled, said "Don’t be sad child. There are holes in the floor of Heaven
Grandma’s watching you today." And she’s watching over you and me
This is a popular sentiment - I would even dare to say a cliche - that departed ones are looking over us and after us through the holes of heaven. Crossing Over with John Edward and psychic networks claim to be able to talk with the dead. There’s another new one starting next week - which means people are listening! And I would venture to bet that many believe the spirits of the departed have not in fact departed - as the Sixth Sense and many movies depict.
What do you believe? Do you think there are living souls of departed ones out there talking to us? Do you think they are waiting for a proper burial before they can leave this earth? Maybe you’ve actually seen pictures of ghosts or had a personal experience with something that scared the pants off of you. Personally, I have not. And I am not here today to debate with you whether you saw or felt a “presence” at some time in your life. The purpose of a church service is not to debate about what we think or what we feel, but to listen to what God has to say. For the proper faith only comes through hearing the message. Although God doesn’t have a LOT to say about what happens to the soul after death - we do have some to go on. So let’s open our hearts and minds this morning to consider how God answers the question -
Where Are You Going Between Now and Forever?
I. What does God’s Word say?
The truth of the matter is that the Bible never suggests or supports the idea that spirits of dead people are walking around and talking to us. In the story of Lazarus and the Rich man - what does it say? “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. There is no mention of Lazarus waiting around on earth for a while, nor the rich man. They were immediately escorted to their eternal destinies. There was no in between.
And when the rich man wanted Lazarus to go back and warn his brothers, what did Abraham say? ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’” What does this imply? First of all - that the rich man was NOT ABLE to communicate with his brothers from hell. And it seems that the only way Lazarus could have communicated with his brothers was to rise from the dead, but even then it wouldn’t have done any good. Therefore, if coming to earth does no good for those in heaven, and if those in hell cannot get out, then it would lead us to conclude that the dead DO NOT communicate with us or walk among us. The ONLY POSSIBLE exception would be when Samuel was called back from the dead by the witch of Endor to talk to Saul. Even when this was done, Samuel wasn’t happy about it, and he didn’t have anything good to say to Saul - only judgment.
This is the Scriptural answer we have. Yet there are many religious bodies who want to insist that there is an in-between place - maybe not here - but somewhere. The Catholic Catechism states - All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven. They call this state of in between heaven and earth to be purgatory. They base it on quotes of church fathers and an apocryphal book not found in the Bible. In a funeral sermon, Joseph Smith also said that the spirits of Mormons who have died "are not far from us, and know and understand our thoughts, feelings, and emotions, and are often pained therewith" (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 326). I’m sure there are other church bodies and individuals who believe similar things.
II. Why to believe it
Instead of concentrating on WHAT they believe, which we did in Bible class, I would rather concentrate on the “why” this morning. That’s the main thing, isn’t it - because this is a matter of faith. You can tell someone exactly WHAT God’s Word says - but if they don’t WANT to believe it - they won’t.
So we need to ask the question - WHY do some insist that there are living spirits among us? I would say first and foremost because it’s hard to let go. God did not create man to die, but thousands of people die every day - moms, dads, brothers, sisters, children, and spouses. These friends and family members are missed terribly. Wouldn’t you just love to have one more dance, one more day, one more hug or one more communication from a loved one? So if someone offers you the hope that a loved one is still able to communicate with you and see you, you want to believe it. Therefore, people believe what they want to believe, no matter how far fetched it may be.
But what about the religions - why do they believe in an “in between point”? The Catholic Catechism flat out says - the Church has honored the memory of the dead and offered prayers in suffrage for them, above all the Eucharistic sacrifice, so that, thus purified, they may attain the beatific vision of God. What about the Mormons? They explain that those in the in between land must, “suffer in full for their sins” before “they will be allowed to inherit the lowest degree of glory.” They also have a place where the spirits may progress from one level to another as they learn gospel principles and live in accordance with them.
Isn’t this interesting? Both of these religions know that God demands holiness and threatens punishment to those who are not. They also know that this is impossible to achieve in this lifetime. So they naturally try to PUSH BACK the deadline as much as possible - just like a kid tries to stall for more time to study for a quiz. If they can stretch this time out with a purgatory or an in between kingdom - then they will have more time - first of all to suffer for not being holy and second of all to improve their lives. During this extended period more sacrifices can be made by those still living - by praying for them and being baptized for them and the like. Then maybe - over time they will finally enter heaven. So you will see Catholics praying for the ones who just died and having Eucharists for them - hoping their works will get their loved ones to heaven. You will see Mormons working like crazy trying to get baptized for all of their cousins so they can also get in heaven. It’s interesting to see them come up with similar solutions to the problem of standing before a Holy God and His demand for holiness. The sad thing is that they will never achieve it - not even if they did have a million years to do it.
“Now Pastor,” you may say, “why are you picking on these people? They may be mislead, but at least they’re trying! At least they’re sincere!” You know what - that’s right! At least they are trying. At least they’re thinking about it - and worried about it. It’s better than the majority of people living and working in this world who don’t even think about it - who just live as if life was all about retiring and earning possessions and promotions - ignoring the fact that they will one day die. If you’re one of those people - wake up! I might compare you to a blind person walking across a busy intersection. Even though you can hear the cars and the imminent danger, you imagine that you won’t get hit. If you just live your life and don’t think about the fact that you will someday die and answer to a holy God - you’re a blind fool. You could die today and stand before a holy God! Think about it, and get out of your blind little world. Because if you want to get into heaven - you have to be holy - not tomorrow - not fifty years from now - but right now. You won’t get any time in purgatory to get purified. Your soul won’t have the opportunity to wait for more sacrifices to be made or to make up for what was left undone. The time is now.
Are you ready? What does it all boil down to? It doesn’t matter what you think or how you feel - it only matters what God’s Word says. What does God’s Word say? It all boils down to whether you believe in Jesus Christ, right? Do you believe in Jesus Christ? Very clearly Jesus declared on the cross, “it is finished.” Very clearly God’s Word defines what that means. It means that Isaiah’s promise was fulfilled - that sin has been paid for. It means that we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. (Hebrews 10:10) God’s Word interprets the life and death of Christ in this way - that Jesus was a substitute. That he lived an innocent death and died a horrible death in your place - and that he FINISHED the job - left NOTHING undone. Do you believe that his righteousness is yours or not? Jesus promises that Whoever lives and believes in me will never die. John 11:26 Either you believe that he was your substitute or you don’t. Either you believe He is your holiness or you don’t. There can be no in between.
III. How to live with it
Paul believed it. And when you look at the way that Paul addressed the Ephesians - you can see this faith very clearly. Look at the first verses of his letter -
To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.
Very clearly, Paul called the Ephesians saints, holy and blameless. Now, how could he call these sinful Ephesians holy and blameless? Because they were IN CHRIST. The Bible very clearly understands righteousness not to be something I AM, but something I am DECLARED TO BE, by faith in Christ.
Isn’t it sad, then to see so many people in denial because they just don’t get it? They have to invent an additional time - a little dreamworld for them to live in so they can get holy- so their consciences can somehow find some rest. Isn’t it sad to see them praying for their dead relatives, living in doubt, and just blindly hoping that some day they may end up in heaven - but never knowing for sure?
But when you have faith in Christ’s sacrifice - look at the attitude that the SAINTS had toward death. While the Jews were stoning Stephen, he prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."Ac 7:59 He didn’t say, “Lord Jesus, I hope to see you in about fifty years from now after a few more sacrifices are made for me.” And what did Paul say? I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; Php 1:23 And if you say to yourself, “that’s great for Stephen and Paul - but what about me - normal old Joe? Look at what Jesus said to the THIEF on the CROSS! When the thief asked Jesus to remember him in his kingdom he said, Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” Lk 23:43 The attitude of the believers in Christ was not to be one of doubt - but one of certainty. God’s people were certain of their immediate salvation. In Revelation 20, John also talks about those who die before the Second Coming of Christ. What did he see? I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. Never does it mention anyone waiting to get to heaven. Their souls are there immediately. My friends, God wants you to have that confidence. He wants you to KNOW that the souls of former believers are in heaven right now, and that you will go there also - immediately at the time of your death. Listen to his promises this morning. Listen to Jesus as he says to you, I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. Jn 5:24
If you stop to think about it, how much does the theology of the song, “holes in the floor of heaven” really give you? Would it make you happy to know your grandma was crying in heaven because she couldn’t be with you? Wouldn’t it be better to know that grandma was happy in heaven just being with Jesus?
In Isaiah 63 he told the Israelites - Abraham does not know us or Israel acknowledge us; you, O LORD, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is your name. Abraham did not know the Israelites - but what was more important? The LORD, their Father and Redeemer, was watching over them. Isn’t that the important thing? Wouldn’t we rather have GOD talking to us about His love than our dead relatives talking to us about our past? Wouldn’t we rather have the all knowing LORD watching over us than our grandmothers? The LORD promises us that Jesus already suffered and died for the world - our salvation is complete. He promises us that HE is looking after us. Therefore God says to us on the day we die- “ through faith in Christ - you will be with me in paradise - today.” That’s where we will be between now and forever. Amen.
